The USA and Germany reacted to Russiaʼs plans to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus. They called it escalation and nuclear intimidation.
Reuters and Tagesschau write about it.
The Pentagon said that after Putinʼs statements, there are no signs that Russia plans to use nuclear weapons. But they will continue to monitor the situation there.
"We have not seen any reason to adjust our own strategic nuclear posture nor any indications Russia is preparing to use a nuclear weapon. We remain committed to the collective defense of the NATO alliance," the US Department of Defense said.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Germany called this decision by Putin a "further attempt at intimidation" on the part of the Russian Federation.
"The comparison made by President Putin regarding the distribution of NATOʼs nuclear forces is misleading and cannot be used to justify the step announced by Russia," it said.
- Russian dictator Putin said that Russia plans to finish building a special storage facility for tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus on July 1 and has already handed over the Iskander missile complex capable of carrying such weapons to the Belarusian army.
- According to him, Lukashenko has long raised the issue of placing Russian tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus. Putin says that the US has long deployed such weapons in a number of countries, so there is "nothing unusual" in Belarusʼ request.